The present invention relates generally to coffee brewing equipment, and more particularly to a coffee brew basket with a splash receptacle that prevents hot liquid from contacting a user when the basket is removed during a brew cycle.
Coffee brewing equipment for commercial establishments such as restaurants, hotels, banquet halls, and the like use heavy duty coffee makers that can brew large quantities of coffee, tea, or other beverages in a single brewing operation. The fundamentals of these brewing equipment are well know. A source of water is supplied to the brewing equipment, either heated or the brewing equipment has a heating element to bring the water to a suitable temperature. The hot water is then introduced to a brewing compartment where coffee in a ground state is held in a filter that allows liquids but not the solid grounds to pass. The water infuses with the coffee grounds, and releases the oils and flavors of the grounds to make coffee. The coffee seeps through the filter and out a drain in the basket to a canister, serving container, or holding tank for retrieval to a serving container. When the brewing cycle is complete, the grounds in the basket and the filter are replaced with fresh grounds and a new filter, and the process can be started again.
In large restaurants and hotels, at peak hours such as breakfast, dinner, meetings, etc., the process is continuous and as soon as one brewing cycle ends another begins. Kitchens in hotels and restaurants tend to have a lot of inexperienced workers in them due to high turnover and relatively low pay scales, and training can be challenging to maintain. It is problematic when dealing with electrical equipment and water heated to dangerously high temperatures. One hazard that has arisen is where a worker removes the brew basket prematurely during a brew cycle containing heated water. A basket full of hot water, when pulled out of the brewing equipment, will cause a wave of hot water to rush against the basket wall near the worker, leading to scalding water hitting the wall and splashing over the wall's upper edge. This can cause serious burning to the worker, where the handle is located at the position where the heated water is most likely to spill.
Several prior art brew baskets have attempted to solve this problem, including U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,497,818, 6,487,961, and 6,055,900, each of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. However, there are shortcomings associated with each of these devices that are overcome by the present invention.